The Flamingos have advanced to the semi-finals of the FIFA U17 Women’s World Cup for the first time in Nigeria’s history.
Coach Bankole Olowookere named an unchanged team to face USA in the quarterfinals encounter at the DY Patil Stadium in Navi Mumbai which was delayed due to adverse weather on Friday.
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The game ended in a 1-1 draw after 90 minutes with goalkeeper Faith Omilana making a number of crucial saves to keep the Flamingos in the mix.
The 16-year-old further proved her mettle as she saved two penalties to help the Flamingos beat the Americans during the penalty shoot-outs.
Coming into the game, the Americans were tipped as the favourites but Onamuzo Edafe gave Nigeria the lead just after 25 minutes. A VAR review had confirmed a foul on Amina Bello with the referee wasting no time in pointing to the spot.
The Americans pilled pressure on the Nigerians and were rewarded just before half-time. They equalized in the 40th minute through Amalia Martina Villarreal’s strike.
Both teams started the second half trying to get a second goal with the US dominating much of the encounter. But it never came resulting in a penalty shootout to decide who goes into the semi-final.
In he end, the Flamingos converted four, while the Americans only scored three of their spot kicks to win 4-3.
Nigeria will now play the winner of the game between Colombia and Tanzania on Wednesday, October 26th, 2022.
